Class Reunions

I recently attended my fiance's 35th high school reunion.
Since my high school hasn't had one to my knowledge,
I could only relate through movies. Most of those films
featured female characters wanting to lose
weight, look their best, and present an image of wealth
and sophistication.

When I heard some people were not attending this reunion,
I thought back to those films and wondered if they didn't
come because they didn't feel they were at their best.
I also heard some people chose not to come because they
didn't have good memories of high school. I can understand
how people might feel this way, but I did notice the reunion
wasn't about reliving high school. These people appeared
warm and inviting. They were happy to see everyone who
attended, whether they remembered them or not.

These people embraced sharing a common background. Many of them
had attended the same grade schools. It was almost a celebration of
surviving life all of these years. No appeared smug or acted like
they were better than anyone else. Most of them had gained a bit
of weight and a few wrinkles over the years, but it didn't matter.
They wanted to see old friends. They spoke of how proud
they were of their children more than they discussed moments
back in high school.

As a writer, I watched a few people who were quiet and wondered
what they were thinking. Of course, I could have made up their story
and sketched the plot for the book before the night was over.

I was delighted each time someone walked over to the quiet
classmate and said hello. Their faces lit up with joy. One woman
told me she didn't know many of the people who came, but she
was glad she chose to attend.

Since I was with my fiance, I only knew the people I had met
while helping to plan the event, but I was also touched by how
genuinely warm they were.

This reunion taught me to take advantage of the opportunities
you have to reunite with hold friends no matter how much
you might have changed over the years or what turns your
life may have taken.

It also taught me reunions are a great place to people watch
if you need to create a new story.

Until next week,
happy writing!
Tina LaVon